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Nellie Crowston

8/12/2017

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​http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/registercitizen/obituary.aspx?n=nellie-v-crowston&pid=186268948
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Candidates Nominated

8/12/2017

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At their meeting on July 19, the Torrington Democratic Town Committee unanimously selected the following candidates for this November’s municipal election.

City Clerk                   Paul Samele, Jr.

City Council                Paul Cavagnero
                                 Luisa Noujaim
                                 Danielle Palladino
                                 Sharon Waagner

Board of Public            Glenn McLeod
Safety                        Mike Whittaker

Board of Education      Edward Corey
                                 Byron Francis
                                 Ellen Hoehne

Constable                   Ruth Nadeau Dwyer
                                 Keri Hoehne
                                 Tom Slaiby
                                 Bob Schuyler

Selectmen                  Joe Gioia

​“We are very proud of the slate we have nominated” Chairwoman Danielle Palladino stated. “They are committed to making Torrington a better place for working families and seniors and also to bringing new businesses to town” she said further. “Torrington has been governed by just one party for the past 12 years. It’s time for people with new ideas to bring much needed changes to City Hall and our school system.”          
 
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Torrington DTC Endorses Dr. Joanne Brogis for Board of Education

9/27/2015

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 At a meeting of the Torrington Democratic Town Committee held on September 10, the committee nominated Joanne Brogis as a candidate for the Board of Education in this November’s municipal election. Dr. Brogis replaces Jeremy Hinman who withdrew as a candidate to devote his time to youth sports activities. Dr. Brogis joins Fiona Cappabianca and Wendy Pataky as the Democratic candidates for the board.

D
r. Brogis served in the United States Air Force for thirty years and attained the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force Reserve prior to her retirement. Dr. Brogis obtained her Ph. D. from the University of Connecticut and her master’s degree and bachelor’s degree from Central Connecticut State University. Dr. Brogis is a former Assistant Principal at Torrington High School and worked in the Torrington school system from 1981 until her retirement in 2011. She currently works as an Adult and Continuing Education Transitions Counselor in Danbury. She previously served on the Board of Education of Regional District #6 for ­­eight years and also served as Chairperson. Dr. Brogis is married with three adult children and has lived in Torrington for twenty five years.  
 "Joanne is an outstanding candidate for the Board of Education. She understands that it is critical for the Board of Education to focus on providing exceptional student services, while also getting its fiscal house in order." Chairwoman Danielle Palladino said. "She will be ready on her first day as a board member to work tirelessly on behalf of all Torrington students and families.”


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Candidates Nominated for November's Election

7/31/2015

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At a meeting of the Torrington Democratic Town Committee held on July 23, 2015, the town committee unanimously selected the following candidates for this November's municipal election:

Treasurer:                      Bob Hunter

City Council:                   Ingrid Canady
                                     Paul Cavagnero
                                     Luisa Noujaim
                                     Sharon Waagner

Board of Education          Fiona Cappabianca
                                     Jeremy Hinman
                                     Wendy Pataky

Board of Public Safety:    Doug Benedetto
                                     A. Bates Lyons

Constable:                      Ed Corey
                                     Keri Hoehne
                                     Osvaldo Rosado
                                     Robert Schuyler 

Selectman:                     Jeremy Kincaid
                                     Danielle Palladino

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Election Results 2014

11/8/2014

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Congratulations to Michelle Cook who won her 4th term as State Representative for the 65th House District and to Roberta Willis who her 8th term as State Representative for the 64th House District! Thanks also to Bill Riiska, Melissa Osborne, and Marie Soliani who campaigned tirelessly but ultimately did win seats for the 30th Senate District, 8th Senate District, and 63rd House District respectively.
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New Officers Elected

3/22/2014

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At the TDTC meeting held on Thursday March 20, the committee unanimously elected the following members as officers for the next two years:


Chair              Danielle Palladino
Vice Chair       Chris Cook
Secretary        Paul Summers
Treasurer        Robert Dwyer


The members also thanked Glenn McLeod, Chair; Deb Brown, Vice Chair; and Ken Edwards, Treasurer for their hard work and dedication over the past four years.
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Endorsed Slate for New TDTC

1/15/2014

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At a caucus of registered Torrington Democrats held on January 14, 2014, the attached list of Democrats were endorsed to be members of the next Torrington Democratic Town Committee which will begin a two year term on March 5, 2014. Congratulations!         

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Election Day Voter Registration

11/4/2013

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This election marks the first year that eligible voters may register to vote on Election Day. To find out more and to see if you are eligible, please visit this Secretary of State's website.
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George Craig: "Let the Voters Decide the Tax Collector Issue"

10/29/2013

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Today, George Craig held a press conference to discuss the situation with the Tax Collector. Here are his remarks:

Good afternoon. During my campaign I have discussed the very important issues and challenges facing Torrington and the next Mayor. They include economic development, education and the city’s infrastructure. But today I am here to talk about an issue that has made a lot of news lately and that is the situation with the Tax Collector. I am here to tell the voters of Torrington that as Mayor I will seek to hold a referendum in which the voters themselves decide how we should collect their taxes.

As we all know Torrington is the only town or city in Connecticut that has a private tax collector. While there are some who do not like to refer to him as a “private” tax collector, he is however a private person who has a contract with the City to perform a public function; namely the collection of taxes. He is not a public employee; he is not subject to the same discipline and accountability that all city employees are subject to.  
 
Over the past few weeks we have discovered that:
       
  • 953 taxpayers are owed over $200,00 in overpayments
  • Many people have had great difficulty in dealing with the Tax Collector’s office
    including just trying to obtain a small refund that is owed them
  • The City has been sued by Mr. Crovo over the issue of overpayments; in response the City
    Council has authorized up to $20,000 for a deposition; all at taxpayers’ expense
  • Because of these serious issues, the City Council has approved up to $99,000, again taxpayer money, for a forensic audit, the second such audit in the past three years
People are upset. I hear that every time I talk to voters. Many people believe that because of these problems it’s time to change to a public tax collector. Others believe that the present system is better. There are excellent arguments on both sides of the issue. However, I
believe that the people who pay our city’s taxes should be the ones who decide how their taxes should be collected
. Whether it is public or private, let the voters decide. 

As Mayor one of my first acts will be to ask the City Council to form a Charter Review Commission to deal with one and only one issue: Whether or not to change the present system of how the city’s taxes are collected. I want this commission to do a full review and analysis;
what are the costs and benefits of the present system, what are the costs and benefits of going to a public system including its startup costs. The commission should also look beyond the financial aspect of this issue including whether the present system serves the taxpayers well; are taxpayers treated fairly and honestly, does it breed distrust in our city government.

The commission should do an exhaustive report which presents all the arguments for both private and public. If need be, the city should spend the money necessary to get expert advice to assist the commission. This issue is too important to have a report that is not comprehensive and thorough. The City Council should then vote to submit this question to the voters.  
 
Let us have an open and honest debate about this issue; let’s hear all the facts, let’s hear all the arguments and then let the voters decide. We trust the voters to elect a Mayor, we should trust them to make the right decision on this issue.

I would note that my opponent, as Chair of the last Charter Review Commission last year, voted against submitting this issue to the voters. I think that was a mistake.

Lastly, I want to comment on what I think about this system.  I don’t think the job of collecting taxes should be done by a private person or business. For Mr. Crovo or anyone doing his job to
make a profit, he needs taxpayers to be late in paying their bill. That bears repeating: a private tax collector wants people and businesses to be late, that’s how they make their money. I have a fundamental problem with that.

However, a tax collector who is a city employee doesn’t want the taxpayer to be late; they want the taxpayer to pay what they owe, when they owe it. Additionally the present system breeds distrust in our city government.  We cannot have a system in which people do not trust that their taxes will be collected fairly or believe that they will be treated fairly. That’s not good and that is what we have been hearing from our residents over the past few weeks and actually over
the past few years. 
 
As Mayor I promise to bring accountability and transparency to city government. The present tax collector system is neither accountable nor transparent to the taxpayers. Here’s a quote from my opponent from two weeks ago about the new forensic audit: “For anybody that has  followed the city’s relationship with the tax collector, this isn’t the first attempt to get an audit of the tax collector’s business and tax records. “We are always at the mercy of what information the tax collector was willing to release to us.”**  That’s an amazing comment and shows another fundamental problem with this system: the City shouldn’t be and can’t be at the mercy of any person; especially the tax collector.  
 
For once and for all, let’s let the voters decide on how the City should collect its taxes.  
 
Thank you

 **Source: “Complaints to City Officials Heard for Years”, Waterbury Republican-American, October 8, 2013


 

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Rides to the Polls

10/27/2013

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The Torrington Democratic Town Committee will be offering rides to the polls for voters on Election Day, November 5th.  Interested persons should call and leave a message prior to November 5 at our headquarters telephone number (860 618-7071) or call on 
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